How to sell a gun collection

[BigToby]

How does a widow, who knows nothing about guns, go about selling her late husband's gun collection assuming the immediate family does not want the collection? Are there companies here in Baton Rouge who would handle a situation like this?

 

[MetalVendor]

Ask a friend. I’ve gone through and sold two separate collections for widows within the past five years. Just ask around. Someone close to the family will more than likely be happy to help.

 

[dantheman]

First of all , SLOW DOWN . Take your time and do your homework .

 

[JBP55]

You could list everything for her on Bayou Shooter and if priced right someone may buy the entire collection.

 

[twinin]

You could use someone trustworthy to do it a piece/pieces at a time to get the most money. A whole collection is quick but may bring in less money. Many gun shops will sell guns for you on consignment.

 

[DBMJR1]

I just sold a small four gun collection for a neighbor widow down the street. Right here on BS.

 

[iomg8]

yeah post it up here with some pics, I would like to check out some older guns. What I would do, is check gunbroker, and what is msrp, and try to price it close to what you think is fair using those 2 prices.

 

[john17427]

Depends on how many firearms and what types. Collector pieces or just a gathering of eclectic arms? If it's a lot of high dollar collector pieces, auction house. If it's a large number of eclectic pieces, possibly through a gun store like Jim's or Louisiana Gun and Reloading on consignment. Just a dozen or so. sell them here. Yes, a knowledgeable friend can help a great deal.

 

[Fordfella]

Do your homework. I sold a few pieces for an estate. The executor was shocked when I sent him a check. He would have sold the entire lot for what I got for the best 4 pieces.

 

[BigToby]

How does a widow, who knows nothing about guns, go about selling her late husband's gun collection assuming the immediate family does not want the collection? Are there companies here in Baton Rouge who would handle a situation like this?

Thank you to all who replied. Your suggestions were very helpful. Thanks again

 

[BlueShamu]

Years ago, I bought a “collection” of weapons from a widow. I went through everything she had, put a fair market value for each piece, totaled it up and discounted that total somewhere around 15-20%. She took the list and a few of the guns to a local gun shop and asked them to value those guns against my prices. The gun shop told her, “He’s giving you a fair deal. Plus, you are done with bringing strangers into your house because he is willing to buy everything.”

I’ve since lost all of those in a boating accident.


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[Old School]

People need to be more careful with all of these boating accidents

 

[KingpenM3]

Another option is Rock Island Auction. Biggest in the business. They run uhaul trucks all over the country picking up collections to be sold.

https://www.rockislandauction.com/

 

[bullman63]

I'm in a similar situation with guns to sell for a family member. Gun shops here charge 25% of the sales price and pawn shops will offer you 50% of the "new" value. Neither are really good options. You got some good advice above. If you have pistols or AR type firearms, you may want to use a FFL holder to do a transfer for you and pay them the $40 or so cost to help you avoid some issues down the road.

 

[Welldoya]

Some good advice here. I helped a good friend’s niece sell several of her deceased husband’s guns a couple of years ago.
Does the deceased have a trustworthy friend who knows guns?
Second choice would be consignment at a local gun shop. Be sure to make a list and take pictures of what you take to the shop and I wouldn’t pay over 15% consignment fee.

 

[El Pozzinator]

Ford’s specializes in consignments. Louisiana firearms are good people I’ve dealt with repeatedly. I mostly like Jim’s but they’re not exactly known as being about the consumer so much as about the profit margin… that said, most of the folks working there are very knowledgeable and would likely at least point you in the right direction. Cabelas used to do estate purchases - a close friend of my brother in law in West Virginia is the northeast director for their gun library purchasing. Not sure if they’re still doing it but they used to be generally pretty fair with their pricing. Personally, I think a 20% commission is fair to move a good item, and 25% to move cheap or very niche items.

 

[emile64]

How does a widow, who knows nothing about guns, go about selling her late husband's gun collection assuming the immediate family does not want the collection? Are there companies here in Baton Rouge who would handle a situation like this?

I am an FFL in Metairie and my business is based on locating and selling firearms for my customers. My company is Hientz Firearms.

 

[twinin]

I thought 25% seemed high for consignment as well. It would probably be based on the quality/collectability of the lot as well. Also, like the car auctions, they will sometimes take less on a per item basis to make a deal work for a customer and net the same for the seller.

 

[pyreaux]

You can try calling someone like Estates by Two Sisters to help or give advice. I believe they've sold a few collections with their estates sales. Knives as well. They have a resoursmce to two that's helps them price guns and knives.

 

[mrwiggins]

How does a widow, who knows nothing about guns, go about selling her late husband's gun collection assuming the immediate family does not want the collection? Are there companies here in Baton Rouge who would handle a situation like this?

i'm happy to help if i can. i've helped with some estate sales in the past.